HSBC's New £120 Switch Offer

dj1471

Applied for the Advance online around 10am last Monday, received an acceptance letter today with a few docs to sign and send back.

I do meet the apparent salary requirement, but I did answer honestly that I would not be paying my salary into the account though the money to fund the monthly pay-in would come from salary...

I do however have good credit history, a decent amount of outstanding mortgage and reasonable savings all of which were likely factors.

YorkshireBoy

dj1471 wrote: »

I do however have...reasonable savings all of which were likely factors.

I don't remember being asked how much savings I had during the online application (then again I was making the application sheltering from 40 degree heat whilst on my 3rd Mythos one lunchtime last week!).


But even if I was asked, they wouldn't know if I was telling the truth or not as they couldn't verify my claim from the credit search.

anoncol

What if I closed my unused account to open this? What are my chances?

dj1471

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

I don't remember being asked how much savings I had during the online application (then again I was making the application sheltering from 40 degree heat whilst on my 3rd Mythos one lunchtime last week!).

But even if I was asked, they wouldn't know if I was telling the truth or not as they couldn't verify my claim from the credit search.

I do remember that being a question, but I could be wrong. Much of the extra stuff they ask for can't be verified (like length of time with employer, value of property etc) but people have no reason to lie about such things because they're not really relevant to the application, but HSBC must be using that info to decide how desirable a customer you are.

Herbalus

jhyt89 wrote: »

If you have a criteria outlined in public, then if someone fits the criteria 100%, then it's a waste of their time if they spend the 45 mins to 60 mins it takes to apply and get rejected. You also give away so much private info to the bank and don't get the product you are entitled to get.

This is my point. Nobody is entitled to an Advance account. They are a commercial company, and can reject you as a customer as much as you can reject them as a provider. I agree you might be annoyed that you were declined after meeting the published criteria, but meeting all the published criteria doesn't give you the right to the account.

For example, you will agree that HSBC can decline you based on their assessment of your credit history, and yet their credit history requirements are not published! The same logic can extend to other aspects of their desired customer profile. It sounds like they asked for a lot of information on the application form, so perhaps they were looking for people with large savings or existing loans. I don't know. But they can't exactly say in their advert "people with large savings will be given priority" if that's what they're after.

dggar

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

Add me to the list!

Applied last Tuesday, 30th June and got the "wait 5 days" response
Not heard anything so called them just now
Declined Advance, but Bank Account opened instead (2 days ago)
Being passed to underwriters for possible reversal of decision
Income well in excess of £1,750 a month, so likely reason is "credit scoring"
Told them to close the Bank Account if decision not overturned
Should hear back within 48 hours

I was asked by the chap in the Advance Team "why do you want the Advance Account?"...as if it wasn't obvious!

Did HSBC offer to pass the application to the underwriters or did you have to request them to do it?

YorkshireBoy

dggar wrote: »

Did HSBC offer to pass the application to the underwriters or did you have to request them to do it?

It was his suggestion to pass it over to an underwriter. I had already said that I wasn't interested in, and would immediately close, anything but the Advance account I applied for so maybe that prompted him.

Frogletina

Frogletina wrote: »

I suppose I should have asked about filling the form in, but as the adviser said I'd need to take documentation in to a branch it should all be sorted there. Was told I'd get a call back with an appointment from a local branch by Wednesday.

frogletina

Having not heard from the branch, I called into the branch today. Did not get further than receptionist who said unless my salary was over £1750 and mandated I would not be accepted and she did not want to waste my time. I told her that there was nothing online to show that this was the case. I also asked her whether savings interest and dividend interest was classed as income. She said not unless paid monthly! I said this does not happen with dividend income - she said she could get me an appointment but not today in which some one would check and advise. I declined to make an appointment for another day.

RichardTheComic

I applied for my HSBC advance account today. Was looking for a better savings rate for my ISA so I'll let you know how I get on. And if I ever see a sniff off the £240 free money

Dird

I wasted a few days with the forms HSBC asked me to sign...it said mail to some office or take into branch. I thought in branch would be faster but all they do is then mail it on for me =/
Maybe I'll get the debit card this Friday/Saturday (handed the papers in on Tuesday morning) and then attempt the switch